Frederick Howard Buller (May 25, 1914 – June 7, 1994) was a Canadian

aeronautical engineer Aerospace engineering is the primary field of engineering concerned with the development of aircraft and spacecraft. It has two major and overlapping branches: aeronautical engineering and astronautical engineering. Avionics engineering is si ...

Early career

Buller was born in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

, on May 25, 1914. He began with an interest in sailboat design. He attended

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a public university, public research university with campuses near Vancouver and in Kelowna, British Columbia. Established in 1908, it is British Columbia's oldest university. The university ranks a ...

from 1932 to 1935. Thereafter, he spent several years studying naval architecture in

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

, Scotland. In 1937, he switched his focus to aeronautical engineering, moving to

Oakland, California Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...

, to enroll in the

Boeing School of Aeronautics The Boeing School of Aeronautics was started by Boeing to compete against the Wright brothers' Wright Flying School and Curtiss Flying School in San Diego, California. Founded in 1929 at Oakland Municipal Airport in Oakland, California, the school ...

. In 1939, he moved to

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city ancho ...

, Alberta and began working in the field with Aircraft Repair (later Northwest Industries). In 1943, he relocated to

London, Ontario London (pronounced ) is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, along the Quebec City–Windsor Corridor. The city had a population of 422,324 according to the 2021 Canadian census. London is at the confluence of the Thames River, approximate ...

, assisting in the

war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...

efforts at Central Aircraft, a subsidiary of

de Havilland The de Havilland Aircraft Company Limited () was a British aviation manufacturer established in late 1920 by Geoffrey de Havilland at Stag Lane Aerodrome Edgware on the outskirts of north London. Operations were later moved to Hatfield in H ...

. In September 1944, he settled in Downsview at de Havilland Aircraft of Canada Ltd (DHC), where he would remain for 35 years.

Later career

At de Havilland, Buller, who became its Chief Designer, worked on the designs of a number of notable aircraft, including the

Chipmunk Chipmunks are small, striped rodents of the family Sciuridae. Chipmunks are found in North America, with the exception of the Siberian chipmunk which is found primarily in Asia. Taxonomy and systematics Chipmunks may be classified either as ...

and the de Havilland STOL Beaver. The Chipmunk was extensively used in training RAF and RCAF pilots. The Beaver, registered by then de Havilland president P.C. Garratt as ‘CF-FHB’ in honor of its designer, is on display in the Canadian National Aviation Museum in Ottawa. Buller was also involved in or oversaw the design of the

DHC-3 Otter The de Havilland Canada DHC-3 Otter is a single-engined, high-wing, propeller-driven, short take-off and landing (STOL) aircraft developed by de Havilland Canada. It was conceived to be capable of performing the same roles as the earlier and h ...

(1951),

DHC-4 Caribou The de Havilland Canada DHC-4 Caribou (designated by the United States military as the CV-2 and later C-7 Caribou) is a Canadian specialized cargo aircraft with short takeoff and landing ( STOL) capability. The Caribou was first flown in 1958 ...

(1958),

DHC-5 Buffalo The de Havilland Canada DHC-5 Buffalo is a short takeoff and landing (STOL) utility transport turboprop aircraft developed from the earlier piston-powered DHC-4 Caribou. The aircraft has extraordinary STOL performance and is able to take off i ...

(1964),

DHC-6 Twin Otter The de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter is a Canadian STOL (Short Takeoff and Landing) utility aircraft developed by de Havilland Canada, which produced the aircraft from 1965 to 1988; Viking Air purchased the type certificate, then restarted ...

(1965), and

DHC-7 Dash 7 The de Havilland Canada DHC-7, popularly known as the Dash 7, is a turboprop-powered regional airliner with short take-off and landing (STOL) performance. It first flew in 1975 and remained in production until 1988 when the parent company, ...

(1975). He was a consultant on HMCS Bras D’or, a hydrofoil commissioned by the

Royal Canadian Navy The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN; french: Marine royale canadienne, ''MRC'') is the Navy, naval force of Canada. The RCN is one of three environmental commands within the Canadian Armed Forces. As of 2021, the RCN operates 12 frigates, four attack s ...

. A noted competitor in the 14-footer class (precursor to the

International 14 The International 14 is a British racing sailboat, crewed by two sailors. The class was established in 1928. The boat is a developmental sailing class and so the design rules and the boats themselves have changed dramatically over time to keep ...

) at the

Royal Canadian Yacht Club The Royal Canadian Yacht Club (RCYC) is a private yacht club in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Founded in 1852, it is one of the world's older and larger yacht clubs. Its summer home is on a trio of islands (RCYC Island, South Island and North Chip ...

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

and internationally, Buller initially expressed his interest in sailboat design through innovative customization of hulls designed by others (notably Charlie Bourke); his execution of a gybing centreboard was regarded as one of the first truly effective examples. In the early fifties, his Buller I and Buller II advanced both the general design in the class and its use of materials, as both boats were moulded in a material then new, fibreglass. Buller was also credited with bringing the tell-tale, a strip of string or cloth attached to a wing to test its aerodynamic qualities, over to the sailing world. A significant innovation in sailing at the time, sail tell-tales are now common. In 1955, Buller became one of the founding members, and a Fellow, of the Canadian Aeronautics and Space Institute. Frederick Buller died on June 7, 1994, at White Rock, British Columbia.

Honors

In 1971, the Canadian Aeronautics and Space Institute awarded Buller its McCurdy Award for his major contributions to the de Havilland family of STOL aircraft. The Engineering Centennial Board named the DHC-2 Beaver as among the ten best engineering accomplishments in Canada in 1987. In 1997 he was inducted into the de Havilland Hall of Fame, and in 1999 he was inducted into

Canada’s Aviation Hall of Fame Canada's Aviation Hall of Fame, based in The Hangar Flight Museum in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, commemorates and honours those whose accomplishments in aviation contributed so much to Canada's development as a nation. Founded in 1973, the Hall of ...

. For his achievements on the racecourse and as a designer, Buller was in 2013 posthumously inducted into the Canadian International Fourteen Foot Dinghy Hall of Fame.http://i14.ca/news.htm A list of recent inductees.

References

* Oswald, Mary, ''They Led the Way, Wetaskiwin: Canada's Aviation Hall of Fame'', 1999.

External links

Hall of Fame site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Buller, Frederick Howard 1914 births 1994 deaths Canadian aerospace engineers People from Vancouver